Coalition plans activities for Suicide Prevention Week

Sunday

In Washington County, suicide is the leading cause of death for people aged 25-34, and the third leading cause of death for youth aged 15-24, according to health department statistics.

In Washington County, suicide is the leading cause of death for people aged 25-34, and the third leading cause of death for youth aged 15-24, according to health department statistics.

The Washington County Suicide Prevention Coalition has been on a mission to spread awareness of these startling statistics to let people know there is hope as well as help.

The National Suicide Prevention Week will be observed from Sept. 8-14. Likewise, in the state of Oklahoma and in Washington County, events are planned during the week to increase awareness and ways to help prevent suicide. City and county proclamations, an information booth and a national suicide prevention summit are a few of the activities planned.

At 7 p.m. Sept. 3 at City Hall in downtown Bartlesville, coalition members will be on hand to accept Mayor Tom Gorman’s proclamation of Sept. 9 as Suicide Awareness Day and the week of Sept. 8-14 as Suicide Prevention Week.

According to the proclamation, approximately one million people worldwide die by suicide each year, and it is one of the most disruptive and tragic events a family and community can experience.

The local coalition, the proclamation states, “is working to eliminate the stigma of suicide, educate the community about the warning signs of suicide and ultimately reduce the rate of suicide in our community.”

A similar proclamation will be announced at 9:30 a.m. Sept. 9 at the county building downtown and signed by Gary Deckard, District 1 Commissioner, Mike Bouvier, District 2 Commissioner, and Mike Dunlap, District 3 Commissioner.

“With the community’s support to help us spread the word that there is hope and love for those hurting, we will be able to have an impact on our extreme suicide rate in our county,” said Andria McCollough, coalition chair. “We encourage you to get involved. There are so many things you can do — help distribute materials, help make contacts for trainers to do presentations on how to prevent suicide and so many other ways. It takes just one more person to make an impact on someone’s life. That person is you.”

The coalition plans to distribute prevention materials and free gun locks at a booth set up in front of City Hall from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 9. The community is welcome to stop by, visit and pick up the life-saving information.

Ribbons representing the number of deaths by suicide in Washington County will flutter in the surrounding trees.

“With so many deaths since statistics have been tracked in our county in the 1980s, the visual representation showing those lives is an incredible testament to the need to spread the message of hope in suicide prevention efforts,” said McCollough.

A leading authority on suicide and its impact on the victim’s friends and family members will be in Bartlesville for two events during a Suicide Awareness Summit Sept. 5-6.

Author and consultant Iris Bolton will speak at the regular meeting of the Survivors of Suicide Support Group from 6 to 8 p.m. Sept. 5 in the education room at Jane Phillips Medical Center. The free event is for those who have lost a loved one by suicide.

On Sept. 6, Bolton will be the featured presenter at an all-day workshop for mental health and health care professionals, clergy, educators and general public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Bartlesville Community Center. Workshop topics will include suicide warning signs and risk factors, myths and facts about suicide, best practices philosophy, intervention techniques and services for friends and family whose loved ones have taken their lives.

Registration cost for the workshop is $60, which includes lunch and a copy of Bolton’s book, “My Son…My Son…: A Guide to Healing after Death, Loss or Suicide.”

Registration for either the Sept. 5 Survivors segment, as well as the Sept. 6 all-day workshop should be made by emailing kharlin@glmhc.net. For additional information call Kerry Harlin 918-337-8080 extension 2435.

The Suicide Awareness Summit is sponsored by the Washington County Suicide Prevention Coalition, the Washington County Health Department and the Washington County Association for Mental Health.

To further educate those locally, McCollough has developed a presentation that she will share to area civic groups. To schedule a discussion of suicide prevention, contact McCollough at 918-337-7675.

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